The Nordic Countries and the European Security and Defence Policy

THE NORDIC COUNTRIES AND EU SECURITY POLICY 307arena within which Denmark could participate in terms of an integratedapproach to European security. 22This shows that the Treaty of Maastricht and the establishment of a politicalunion had an impact on the changes in the Nordic countries’ approach to securityin 1992–95. The degree and the character of Europeanization have varied,however, and historical and geopolitical differences have arguably contributedto these differences. During this period there was a recognition in all fourcountries of the EU’s security dimension, but this was interpreted differently ineach country. As argued above, the impact was most evident in Finland andSweden, where it led to changes in these countries’ national security policydoctrines and a move away from the formulation and content of their traditionalneutral orientation.The European Security and Defence PolicyThe framework for the establishment of a European security and defence policywas set out in the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam. 23 For Sweden a future securityand defence dimension of the EU was particularly problematic; and, once insidethe EU, Sweden strove to use its influence to prevent this process fromdeveloping into a collective defence arrangement. With support from Finland,Sweden managed to have the Petersberg Tasks included in the Treaty ofAmsterdam in a way that effectively limited the collective European ambitionin crisis management. 24 While this was perceived as a successful policy actionin both countries, the fact that the Petersberg definition covers tasks that mightgo beyond traditional peacekeeping with regard to the use of military force alsoindicates an important change in the security identity of the two countries. Thischange was most important for Sweden, which was more attached to a policy ofneutrality than was Finland. 25However, the inclusion of the Petersberg tasks in the Treaty of Amsterdamalso made it easier for Denmark to accept and support the EU’s securitydimension. This is evident in the Danish security discourse at that time. Evenso, there was no sign of Denmark’s defence opt-out being abandoned. TheDanish Defence Commission’s report of 1998 emphasized that the country’srelationship to the EU continued to be based on arguments linked to economic22 Frantzen, H. A., ‘NATO and peace support operations 1991–1999: policies and doctrines, a study ofNATO and Britain, Canada, and Denmark’, Doctoral thesis, University of London, King’s College, 2003.23 The Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty on European Union, the Treaties Establishing theEuropean Communities and Certain Related Acts was signed on 2 Oct. 1997 and entered into force on1 May 1999. The text of the treaty is available at URL .24 The Petersberg Tasks were agreed in 1992 to strengthen the operational role of the Western EuropeanUnion. They include humanitarian intervention and evacuation operations, peacekeeping and crisismanagement, including peace making. See chapter 6 in this volume.25 This change has recently been confirmed with the creation of a Nordic battle group (with the participationof Norway) as the Swedish and Finnish contributions to an EU rapid-reaction force.